Stardust & Iron
by monkeyCsaw
Summary: Listen. This is a story of how summer and winter fell. A girl made of stardust and a man built from iron, equals and both too human for their own good. AU
1. Stardust

I don't even have a method anymore, I'm just posting whatever I feel like it lololdontkillmelolol. Anyway, this is a gang!AU with plenty of Gajevy and a little bit of NaLu sprinkled in there, as well as a couple other pairings. Pls enjoy and let me know what you think.

_Title: _Stardust & Iron

_Summary: _Listen. This is how summer and winter fell. A girl made of stardust and a man built from iron, equals and both too human for their own good. AU

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

She didn't expect to meet him. Listen. It's a story for the dying leaves to tell. A story bare branches creak and ache for. Listen. You'll hear winter singing its song and summer sighing softly. Listen.

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><p>The sun was still out when Levy decided to take a walk. She'd been crouched over her computer for a full five hours without breaks, scanning and rewriting codes. When she looked up from her tea and took off her glasses, it was already four in the afternoon. Groaning, she stretched and listened to her bones complain about being in the same position for so long, wincing as the blood flow returned to normal in her legs.<p>

She grabbed her coat and scarf, remembering that autumn was well on its way. Stuffing her feet into her boots, she climbed the stairs out of the basement and slipped outside, waving to her fellow mates, who were mostly lounging about. It was a quiet day. A sweet day she cherished because they were all here, together, alive and happy and she had to remember that life was more than cracked computer screens. These days reminded her that life was rare and precious. Once outside, she took a few moments to just stand, sucking in a deep breath of fresh air. Levy loved her computers, she really did, but she needed a break sometimes. Staring at a screen all day was not her idea of living. She began to walk, stretching as she did so, opening her mouth in a huge yawn. Humming a fast paced pop song to herself, she took off in the direction of the downtown area, intending to get some pens for her friend, Lucy, who had mentioned needing some a while back.

Levy ran a hand through her light blue hair, wincing as her fingers became entangled in knots. Her hair was at that length where it was short but still long enough to get tangled. She loved it. A falling leaf, proudly showing off its dying colors, brushed against her shoulder and she smiled, tilting her head to look at the blue sky framed by dying leaves. Autumn was her favorite season and she intended to enjoy every second of it. The concrete beneath her feet was cracked and weeds were growing and dying in the cracks. She brought her attention back to the space in front of her, swinging her arms wide like she did as a child. After a block, she turned right into an alley, deciding to take a shortcut. It would be dark soon and she hadn't brought anything to protect herself with.

Approximately three feet into the alley, gunshots rang. Her head shot up even as her feet began to move, pounding against the pavement. She didn't stop to think that maybe running towards the gunshots wasn't the best idea. She just ran and prayed to the god she didn't believe in that what she found beyond that corner wouldn't be dead.

"Is everyone okay?" she called, rounding the corner. She skidded to a halt when she found a group of three men surrounding a small girl – alive, alive, alive – dressed in a torn yellow dress. Red stained the shoulder of the dress and Levy felt her blood turn to ice as she considered the fact that the child may have been shot. Her big blue eyes were filled with tears and she wailed upon seeing Levy.

Levy was sprinting for them before she knew what she was doing. "Let her go," she screeched in as powerful a voice her tiny frame could muster. She wasn't much when it came to bare hand-to-hand combat – Natsu and Erza specialized in that – but she couldn't just do _nothing_.

One of the men stepped forward, sneer on his face, and backhanded her across the face before she could land a blow. Laughter sounded from his companions.

A little dizzy, she stood on unsteady legs, spitting out blood. Her options and prospects of getting out of this alive were considerably dismal. _Jet and Droy are gonna kill me,_ she thought belatedly. She eyed the guns in their hands and cursed herself for thinking she could go this one day without being armed.

"I'm warning you," she hissed. She couldn't remember ever being so angry. She was trembling with rage. The little girl was silent, terrified. Levy sent her a silent promise, one from her bones. _I will get you out of this alive._

"Quit playing around, just finish her off," one tall man sighed, expression apathetic. A black glock dangled carelessly in his large hand. Her opponent shrugged and drew his own shining weapon, a small revolver.

"Oi."

The voice startled all of them. Levy whirled to find herself face to face with what seemed to be a brick wall made of human flesh. Looking up – and up, up, up – she finally found a face. A man's face framed by wild black hair and several piercings – were those _red_ eyes? – that was now concentrated into a nasty sneer of his own.

"Didn't your mother teach you it ain't nice to hit a lady," the newcomer snickered. "Especially this shrimp."

_Shrimp?_ Levy was, perhaps irrationally, furious about the nickname. Then again, she reasoned, someone who's there to help can call her whatever they want, as long as they don't get themselves killed.

"Stay out of it, Redfox," her opponent snapped. The little girl, whose presence Levy had nearly forgotten, whimpered, and Levy snapped back to the whole reason she was in this mess.

"Hand the girl over," she said, taking a bold step forward and fixing the men with her hardest glare. "You'll regret it if you don't."

Another chorus of laughter. "And why's that, little lady?"

She smirked. "I've got all of Fairy Tail behind me."

The men burst into more raucous laughter – really why did they have to laugh so much? – before one of them ripped off a glove to show her the tattoo on the back of his hand. Her stomach sank.

"And we got Phantom Lord," the man growled. "Ain't scared of some little girl fairy."

_Okay, plan B_.

She sucked in a deep breath and geared herself for another run at them before the sound of a gun clicking brought her to a halt. She paused, glancing backwards, only to find that the Redfox man was calmly pointing a gun at the would-be kidnappers.

"You know I don't miss," he stated plainly. His eyes glinted dangerously and his lips were curled into a cruel smirk. He reminded her of a bird of prey and she shivered at the thought.

The men exchanged wary glances before scoffing and putting their own weapons away. Levy gaped. One man could make them put their guns away but the threat of an entire gang sent them laughing?

"Not worth it," one muttered, delivering a final kick to the little girl before striding away, companions in tow.

Levy rushed forward before she could think, cradling the girl in her arms. She was relieved to see that the bullet had only grazed her shoulder and that the bleeding had already slowed considerably. At a sound from behind her, she turned to find the man crouched down, face serious.

"Oi, she gonna be alright?"

Levy nodded, shrugging off her coat and bundling the girl in it. She tried not to shake in the sudden cold.

"Thanks, for your help," she mumbled, lifting the child from the ground.

"I don't like kidnappers, 'specially when they're from my own gang."

Levy's eyes widened and she whirled. "You were going to shoot your own gangmates?" she questioned incredulously.

The man raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, what of it? Don't you know who I am, Munchkin?"

The insult flew over her head as her mouth fell open. _Redfox, of course, I knew that name was familiar!_

He was Gajeel, the Iron Dragon. His street cred was infamous and widespread. He worked in the shadows and the blood on his hands was never his own. He was famous for having never missed a shot, or so everyone said. She could still clearly remember the day Makarov had returned with the news that he had joined Phantom Lord last spring. The entire gang had been shocked. He was reputedly a lone wolf who preferred to work with his two companions. He'd been avoiding the Phantom's attempts to recruit him for years. She had always wondered why he ended up joining; he was known for preferring solo missions.

Shaking herself from her increasingly frightening thoughts, Levy began walking back to the abandoned hotel where her own gangmates were probably waiting for her. Her strides were long and measured and she hoped she looked unafraid as she turned her back on Gajeel. "Thanks again, Gajeel. Wouldn't want to be in your place right now. Your mates are probably ratting you out as we speak."

"I can take 'em," he answered easily. He caught up with her and smirked at her questioning glance. "Ya might need help with the kid, and I wouldn't be surprised if those snakes came back for round two."

She swallowed uneasily. "I can handle it, honestly," she said, flashing him a nervous smile.

Gajeel snorted. "Yeah, like you handled the other situation oh so well."

Levy glared at him, shifting the little girl to her other shoulder. "I would have been fine," she sniffed. "Your interference was totally unnecessary."

"You don't even have a gun."

"There's more to fighting than guns."

"Not when the other people have the guns and you don't," he retorted and she nearly growled in frustration.

Choosing not to say anything, Levy turned her attention to the kid in her arms. "What's your name?" she asked in a soft voice, hoping the little girl hadn't fallen asleep.

"S-Sunny," she answered in a soft, scared voice.

Levy smile and rubbed her back. "You're safe now, Sunny, don't worry about a thing, okay?"

Sunny nodded and buried her face in Levy's shoulder. The blue haired woman hummed a soft lullaby, almost forgetting about the hulking presence of the Iron Dragon beside her as the hotel came into view.

Gajeel stopped suddenly and she glanced at him questioningly.

"I gotta head back to Phantom now, face the music," Gajeel sighed. "See you around, Shrimp."

"Don't call me that!"

"How 'bout Munchkin then?"

"No!"

Laughing – and what a distinct laugh he had – the man walked away. Levy traced a warrior in the way he held his head and squared his shoulders and the reality that he could die hit her in the face like a baseball. Muttering to herself about stupid men with stupid piercings, she turned away, trying to convince herself that the death of a member of the rival gang wasn't anything to get all sentimental about.

_Then again, he did really help me out back there. He's not like other Phantom members, _she thought before heaving a sigh and entering the hotel.

Gajeel knew he was in trouble before he even stepped foot in the rundown old bar that was his gang's headquarters. One did not simply interrupt a mission without consequences, even if that one was Gajeel Redfox. He really didn't know what drove him to interfere. Maybe it was the way the little girl curled up on the ground, defeated and so so small left a bad taste in his mouth. He had always detested kidnappings and child brutality. Maybe it was the not-much-bigger woman barking orders to men who could snap her like a twig. He saw her clearly in his mind's eye, hands clenched in fists and little body shaking, spitting blood out like a man. He almost smiled to himself. She was something.

When he walked into the bar, Lily pounced, eyes flashing.

"What did you _do_?" his old friend asked desperately, ushering him to a dark corner of the bar where his dark skin made him look one with the shadows.

"Stopped a kidnapping, why?"

"Jose wants your head on a silver platter, that's why. We gotta get out of here."

"And go where? We can't hide forever."

"Fairy Tail, they'll take us in. And you know they're the only people Jose won't touch."

Gajeel nearly choked on his own spit. "No way in hell," he answered, growled really. Lily threw him a glare that clearly read _do not argue with me on this I'm saving your life you stupid idiot_ and Gajeel scoffed, turning his head away moodily.

"I don't wanna be no fairy," he muttered mutinously.

Lily rolled his eyes, crossing his muscled arms in exasperation. "Gajeel, we don't actually have to join. We can just…stay for a little while."

"Juvia thinks it's a good idea," a quiet voice interrupted them. Gajeel cursed, hating himself for forgetting the blue haired woman who had appeared at his side. There was no way she would be safe with a bounty on his head; she was too close to him, knew too much.

"At least she sees the reason," Lily mumbled and Gajeel glared at him. He loved Lily, really he did, but he wanted to strangle the dark-skinned man sometimes.

"Fine," he snapped. "I needa pack."

Juvia held up his gray duffel bag, smiling knowingly. "Juvia knew you would agree."

Muttering obscenities under his breath, Gajeel snatched the bag up and stormed out of the empty bar, only to come face to face with a shaking gun.

A skinny eighteen year old boy Gajeel vaguely remembered from some meetings bit his lip so hard it bled, eyes nearly closed as he squinted up at Gajeel, his gun poking the taller man's chest. His long face looked terrified and childish but he stood his ground, albeit shaking like a dead leaf in a winter storm.

"Jose wants you dead," the boy said in a quiet voice. "This is my chance."

"Get a life, kid," Gajeel sighed, slapping the gun out of his trembling hand with practiced ease. "You're not gonna get yer revenge or whatever it is you want. You don't got the guts." He had no idea who this kid was but Gajeel was willing to bet he'd wronged him in some way. Killed his best friend or burned his house down maybe. Gajeel wasn't a saint by any stretch of imagination. But the people he went after usually deserved it. He didn't bother wasting his time explaining this to the red-haired youth who looked at him with wide blue eyes filled with boyhood.

The boy shrank as Gajeel stomped by. "I'll kill you," he screamed at the Iron Dragon's retreating back, paying no attention to his companions. "My name is Gavin and I will ruin you!"

"Keep dreamin'," Gajeel shouted without looking back. The only sound after that was the clicking of Juvia's heels against the cement and the whisper of dying leaves in the breeze.


	2. Impure

A/N: I really do not like this chapter. Gimme some feedback and maybe I'll be motivated enough to do some serious editing. Thank you for the awesome reviews so far! They're really awesome to read :)

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

Listen. Even stars get dirty. Their light is not pure. No light is pure. And that's okay.

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><p>Levy had just finished changing into warm leggings and a sweater when there was a knock at her door.<p>

"Come in," she called cheerfully, double checking to be sure her gun was in its usual drawer and her knives were tucked into her boots.

"Levy-chan, Makarov wants us all downstairs in the lobby. There's been a, um, well a development," her best friend Lucy said, poking her head in.

Levy grabbed her half full water bottle from her dresser before following Lucy out the door. The girls chatted on the way down about their recent books. Levy loved that she could tell Lucy about how she secretly wished a man would sweep her off her feet like the ones she read about, and Lucy would nod eagerly instead of laughing. Levy laughed as Lucy told her a story about Natsu and Happy, his little protégé, getting into trouble for sneaking fireworks in again.

"You should've seen Laxus' face," Lucy snickered. Levy grinned, amused by the picture in her head. The tall blonde man had no doubt been furious.

They entered the lobby and found the rest of the gang waiting, murmuring amongst themselves. Erza stood at the front of the room, usual stern expression in place and beside her, looking rather uncomfortable, were three people, one of which was _very_ familiar.

"Gajeel?" Levy gasped when she drew closer.

Lucy frowned, looking at the blue haired woman questioningly. "Do you know him?" she asked.

"Yes. No. Well, sort of. He helped me save Sunny earlier," Levy answered honestly.

Gajeel looked down at her, smirking when he recognized her. "Whaddya know Shrimp, it's me again."

"Are you okay? Did you run into trouble with your gang?" she asked, ignoring the demeaning nickname. Lucy, on the other hand, bristled.

"Shrimp?" the blonde screeched. "Really, you're going to take that, Levy?"

Levy waved her hand dismissively. "I can't make him stop so I better just get used to it."

"Oh look, the Munchkin is learning," Gajeel snickered.

Levy sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose with her fingers. "Are you alright?" she asked again through gritted teeth. She didn't see any visible wounds or bruises on him and he didn't look like he'd been chased to their headquarters.

"Yeah, I'm fine Shrimp, don't worry 'bout it," Gajeel answered easily. The man next to him shifted, smiling awkwardly when Levy turned her head to look at him.

"Oh, hello! I'm Levy," she said with a smile, holding her hand out. The tall man's smile change to something soft and gentle. He was muscled and built like a tree; Levy was positive he could snap her in half.

"Call me Lily," he said in a deep rumble of a voice. "And this is Juvia," he added, gesturing to the blue haired woman beside him, who ducked her head in greeting. She was a pretty lady, with long healthy hair and a figure that was obviously nice even through her coat.

Levy opened her mouth to ask what they were doing there but just then Makarov's voice boomed out over the gathered crowd.

"I would like to welcome a few wards from Phantom Lord. Their gangmates have turned against them and so they've come to seek asylum here. They will, of course, be working to earn their keep. I already have a few jobs in mind for them," Makarov announced once everyone had quieted down. Instantly, voices raised to protest.

"We can't trust them not to murder us in our sleep," Natsu yelled. The pink haired man was shirtless and Levy watched as Lucy sighed, slapping a palm to her forehead.

"Idiot," her blonde friend muttered and Levy nodded in quiet agreement.

"How do we know what they said is true?" Gray asked in a far more reasonable voice.

Makarov smiled. "I have already received a message from Jose telling me to return them so they can face punishment or we will have war declared upon us." He paused, smile growing wider. "I do believe he has forgotten that we've been at war for a good five years now."

"Yeah, and we've been winnin' it!" someone called from the back, prompting everyone to cheer. Levy laughed and threw her hand in the air, pumping it in their signature Fairy Tail pose.

"There will be guard posted outside their door at night until no longer needed. Any questions?"

Lucy raised her hand. "Yes, Lucy m'dear?"

"What are these jobs you have in mind?" Lucy asked.

Levy swore that Makarov smirked.

"Lily will be helping out with some renovations around the hotel. Juvia will be collecting information and Gajeel will be assigned to guard duty for our very own hacker wiz."

"WHAT?!" Two male voices practically screamed. Levy's mouth fell open but she found she couldn't utter a single word in protest.

"We protect her just fine!" Jet wailed.

"What's the meaning of this Makarov?" Droy demanded.

Makarov sighed. "Gajeel has already agreed. It's done."

Levy glanced up at said man, who looked rather confused. "Who's this hacker chick anyway?" he asked, suddenly remembering that he never got the mystery girl's name.

Dozens of eyes all swerved to focus on him in a matter of seconds and he shifted uneasily. "What?" he snapped. "Should I know this?"

Natsu scoffed. "Everyone's heard of her. Her street name is Blue Widow, but we all call her Levy."

Now Gajeel wasn't a genius. But he also fancied that he wasn't stupid either. He'd been sent on plenty of missions that required cleverness and wit to survive. So when the name Levy registered in his brain, he turned to look at the blue haired midget before he could even confirm that the blonde had actually called her Levy earlier and suddenly her open mouthed look of astonishment made a whole lot more sense.

"Is that you?" he sputtered, eyeing her warily. She smiled and gave him a little wave.

"At your service," she said cheerfully and his jaw fell open.

"_You're_ the wonder girl Makarov wouldn't shut up about?"

She scowled. "Why so surprised?" she sniffed.

"You don't look like much," he said bluntly.

Levy scowled even harder. "I'm the best there is, for your information," she snapped, irritated. Her fingers tightened around the water bottle and she was struck with the very strong urge to chuck it at his head. Gajeel grunted.

"So good you can't even protect yourself?"

"I can too! Which reminds me, why the protection detail?" Levy turned to her leader, who was watching the exchange with a certain degree of amusement.

"You'll be starting a very dangerous project soon and Gajeel is just the man we need to keep you safe while you do it. He'll also be your muscle man. Tell him what to do and he'll do it."

Levy glanced at Lucy, the girls sharing a knowing smirk. _Muscle man huh?_

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><p>"So you want me to hack Phantom Lord, drain their money, and transfer it to the police?" Levy summarized. "Isn't that, you know, really illegal? And stupidly dangerous? What if someone finds out we fed the police money in exchange for immunity?"<p>

Makarov smiled serenely. He loved Levy dearly; she had a good head on her shoulders, in more ways than one, and her abilities were not to be trifled with. The girl was just too damn smart for her own good sometimes.

"They won't," Makarov answered. "Because you'll be handling the whole thing, and I have complete faith in you, Levy."

Levy smiled even as she shifted her weight uncomfortably. She looked around Makarov's office, trying to decide if she was flattered or stressed. She decided she was a combination of both and she sighed. Beside her, Gajeel cleared his throat.

"Ain't that a bit much to put on one person?" Gajeel asked roughly.

Makarov nodded. "It is, which is why you'll be helping her. You'll be her liaison with the police, keeping them updated and such. It all has to be done in person or at least by letters. We can't risk someone being able to find out. And you're perfectly capable of running errands on your own, or at least with only a few others. Also, if Levy were to be caught, the gang would basically be over. We'd have to scatter, find some new territory." Noticing Gajeel's confused face, he chuckled and leaned forward on his desk, eyes gleaming.

"Levy dear, do you mind sharing your story with Gajeel? I think it would clear a few things up," Makarov said. Levy blushed and nodded, turning to face the tall man and leaning back against Makarov's desk.

"I joined Fairy Tail when I was 10. You don't need to know about my family or any of that but what you do need to know is that I was already a hacker when I joined. I spent five years teaching myself more before I officially started doing jobs for the gang. Until then, I was doing the usual patrols and babysitting jobs. Fairy Tail likes to help out around the community; it's part of the reason the cops aren't always breathing down our necks.

Anyway, I became the gang's hacker and I soon earned myself a reputation. You see, after three years, people kind of feared me. I was this shadowy image that no one had ever seen in person. I always send messengers to do my dirty work. I've become a sort of phantom lord, shall we say. People are terrified of me. With my reputation, all I have to do is ask for some money and there will be ten times that amount in our accounts. People have a lot of secrets they would like to keep hidden and I've revealed enough that people know I mean business. Of course, I only do this to the bad guys, ones who got dirty money in backhanded deals.

So a good 65% of our income is due to me. Another thing is that I can hack the police databases and erase all of our members' records. Everything is digital now. Because of me, quite a few of these people have escaped life in prison for embezzlement, assault and armed robbery, even suspected homicides in some cases. If I don't refresh the system every so often, everyone's records go right back to where they were and suddenly half of Fairy Tail has to run."

She sucked in a deep breath, grinning at Gajeel. "I have records of some very, _very_ important people. I keep them as an insurance policy. Nobody but me knows how to keep the system updated. This way, they can't send someone to finish me off. They have to listen to me and I get a little extra protection. Other gangs wouldn't dare to touch me, even if they knew who I was."

Gajeel ran a hand through his hair before breaking into laughter. "Shrimp, you're one hell of a badass, you know that?"

Levy grinned cheekily. "I know."

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><p>ugh ugh ugh ew i hate it let me know what you think thx lovelies<p> 


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